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This stage provided the final boost into orbit, where it shut down. After a few orbits of earth, when the astronauts were ready to head for the moon, this engine had to be restarted, to provide the push needed to escape the pull of the earth. It only burned for a few minutes, giving the spacecraft package attached to the top enough speed to escape orbit. Then the Apollo spacecraft separated from this stage, which was left to fly on into space. From that point on, the Apollo craft coasted all the way to the moon. It took three days. |